Suspect in Tennessee Waffle House shooting had guns seized after arrest near White House last year

A man stormed a Waffle House restaurant in Nashville, Tenn., on April 22, 2018, and shot four people to death, according to police. The suspect, Travis Reinking, was arrested April 23 after a manhunt.

Kristine PhillipsWashington Post

Months before Travis Reinking became the target of a manhunt in Tennessee for a shooting rampage that killed four people, he tried to go to the White House to meet with President Donald Trump.

Reinking, federal officials say, tried to cross a security barrier at the White House complex — an incident that resulted in his arrest and later led to the confiscation of his guns and revocation of his firearms license in his home state of Illinois. But the four weapons would end up back in Reinking’s possession after authorities returned them to his father, officials said.

Early Sunday morning, armed with one of those weapons, an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle — and wearing nothing but a green jacket — Reinking, 29, opened fire at a Waffle House restaurant in Nashville, police said. Four people were killed and four others were injured. The suspect, wanted for murder and feared to be armed, has not been found.

Nashville police Chief Steve Anderson said there was no clear motive, though Reinking, who is originally from Morton, Ill., and moved to the Nashville area last fall, may have “mental issues.”

Reinking was arrested in July near the White House and charged with unlawful entry, a misdemeanor, according to officials. Officials said there was not much evidence at the time that he posed a danger to the public. He was ordered to do 32 hours of community service and stay away from the White House for four months. The case against him was dismissed in November.

After an investigation by the FBI office in Springfield, state and local officials confiscated Reinking’s guns and revoked his firearm license, officials said.

Sheriff Robert Huston in Tazewell County said deputies allowed Reinking’s father to take possession of the weapons on the promise that he would “keep the weapons secure and out of the possession of Travis.” Huston added that, based on past deputies’ encounters with Reinking, “there’s certainly evidence that there’s some sort of mental health issues involved.”

While Huston said it was unclear how Reinking reclaimed the firearms, Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said that his father “has now acknowledged giving them back to his son.”

Under Illinois law, the weapons can be released to a family member, but Reinking could not lawfully possess the firearms there, Anderson said. It’s unclear if possessing the weapons was illegal in Tennessee.

Reinking was fired from a construction job about three weeks ago and was later hired by another employer, Aaron said. Reinking had not been to work since last Monday.

At the end of the Reinking family’s winding, gravel driveway, a Tazewell sheriff’s deputy sat in a marked squad car. The stately home was illuminated by some exterior accent lighting and some lights indoors were on.

A relative of Reinking’s said the family has no comment.

A neighbor described the Reinking family as the “best neighbors he’s ever had.” They own and operate a crane rental business serving much of central Illinois, including nearby Tremont, Peoria, Bloomington, Pekin.

“It’s just a tragedy,” said the neighbor, who did not want to be named. “They are just wonderful people.

“The boy,” he added, referring to Travis Reinking, “He’s a good kid but he’s lost some connections.”

Police reports filed in Illinois show past run-ins with authorities.

In May 2016, Tazewell County deputies were called to a CVS parking lot where Reinking told officers that pop singer Taylor Swift was stalking him and hacking his phone, and that his family was also involved, according to a report released Sunday. Reinking agreed to go to a hospital for an evaluation after repeatedly resisting the request, the report said.

Another report from the sheriff’s office said Reinking barged into a community pool in Tremont last June and jumped into the water wearing a pink woman’s coat over his underwear. Investigators believed he had an AR-15 rifle in his car trunk, but it was never displayed. No charges were filed.

Colleen Daley, director of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence, said Sunday that mass shootings have become all too commonplace.

“I mean, it’s a tragedy yet again. … Congress, all they do is leave thoughts and prayers. But we need to pass legislation that can and will save lives. You can go to breakfast and get shot. You can go to school and get shot. You can go to church, go down the street. Whether you are white or black, rich or poor, bullets don’t stop at borders.”

Daley said there are several pieces of legislation in Illinois aimed at curtailing gun violence, including the so-called red flag bill that would allow a relative, friend or member of law enforcement to report someone in distress whose guns need to be temporarily taken away. An affidavit to be reviewed by a judge would be filed including information about the location and types of weapons the person possesses.

The bill, called the Lethal Violence Order of Protection Act, would require the person to turn over to a local police agency any firearm, FOID card or concealed carry license. The person could request to get the confiscated firearm back after the order of protection is terminated or expires, according to the bill. It passed the Illinois Senate in February but has not been approved by the House.

Similar bills have gained traction across the country in the wake of the Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. A handful of states, including Indiana, already have red flag bills.

High-caliber rifles have also become a flashpoint. Another Illinois bill would ban the sale of assault rifles statewide, something the handgun council supports.

“They are clearly the weapon of choice in these type of shootings,” Daley said.

In Sunday’s attack, authorities hailed the customer who intervened to stop a further bloodbath, James Shaw Jr., 29, as a hero — though the father of a 4-year-old girl deflected the praise.

Shaw told reporters he first thought the gunshots fired around 3:25 a.m were falling plates. He said when he realized what was happening, he took cover behind a door as shots shattered windows.

“I looked back and I saw a person lying on the ground right at the entrance of the door, then I jumped and slid ... behind a push door — a swivel door,” Shaw said. “He shot through that door; I’m pretty sure he grazed my arm. At that time I made up my mind that he was going to have to work to kill me. When the gun jammed or whatever happened, I hit him with the swivel door.”

He said it was then that they began wrestling. They cursed at each other as they scuffled, Shaw said, and he was able to grab the hot barrel of the rifle and toss it over a counter.

The gunman then ran away.

Authorities said the gunman shed his jacket nearby and police found two AR-15 magazines loaded with bullets in the pockets. He was seen walking, naked, on a road, officials said, but later was seen in pants after apparently returning to his apartment. Two of the weapons returned to Reinking’s father, a long gun and a handgun, remain missing after police searched Reinking’s apartment.

The dead were identified as customers Akilah Dasilva, 23; Deebony Groves, 21; Joe R. Perez, 20; and restaurant worker Taurean Sanderlin, 29. A police statement said Perez and Sanderlin were killed outside the restaurant, Groves was fatally shot inside, and Dasilva was critically wounded inside and later died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

A witness, Chuck Cordero, told local media outlets that he saw the suspect get out of his pickup and immediately begin shooting.

“When I saw him get out of his pickup truck, all he had on was his jacket … No sock, no shoes, no underwear. Just a jacket and an assault rifle,” Cordero told Fox affiliate WZTV.

As Cordero hid under his car, he watched the gunman fire a few shots through the restaurant’s glass windows before he went inside, he said.

Cordero said Shaw saved lives. “There was plenty more people in that restaurant,” he told the Tennessean newspaper.

Shaw’s right hand was bandaged at an afternoon news conference after suffering an apparent bullet graze on one elbow. He also fell and hit his knee, landing in the hospital for a time early Sunday. He added he didn’t see himself as a hero, but feels certain he wouldn’t be alive if he hadn’t succeeded.

“I didn’t really fight that man to save everyone else. That may not be a popular thing,” said Shaw, who was raised in the area, attended Tennessee State University and works as a wireless technician for AT&T. “I took the gun so I could get myself out” of the situation.

But he said he was glad to save other lives as well.

At Sunday’s news conference, Waffle House CEO Walter Ehmer joined several law enforcement agents in thanking Shaw for his bravery.

“You don’t get to meet too many heroes in life,” Ehmer said before addressing Shaw, who dabbed at tears in his eyes. “We are forever in your debt.”